Fantasy Thanksgiving

Because it’s Thanksgiving and there are three games on Thursday this week, here’s a special edition of Fantasy Friday. There will still be a normal edition on Friday, though, so come back for more fantasy advice then.

Thumbs Up

The following players should have favorable matchups this week. Their chances of success are greater due to tendencies by the opponent’s defense.

LenDale White (RB) and Chris Johnson (RB) vs. Detroit.
Detroit is worst in the league against the run and these guys should have good games.

Bo Scaife (TE) vs. Detroit.
Scaife is the Titans’ top target and likely will have success against a bad Lions defense.

Calvin Johnson (WR) vs. Tennessee.
Johnson is the Lions’ only playmaker and will get passes thrown his way all day even though the Titans play tough defense.

All Cowboys (QB, RB, WR, TE) vs. Seattle.
The Seahawks are worse against the pass than the run, but the Cowboys should be able to do both well in this game so Romo, Barber, Owens, Williams, and Witten are all a go.

Kurt Warner (QB) vs. Philadelphia.
He’s got a tough matchup, but you can’t sit a guy that is playing this well. He’ll definitely get his attempts and completions.

Thumbs Down

The following players should have unfavorable matchups this week. Their chances of success are worse due to tendencies by the opponent’s defense.

Kevin Smith (RB) vs. Tennessee.
You’d have to have a pretty weak team to be considering playing Smith, but I know teams out there do have him, and he’s facing a stout run defense this week.

Matt Hasselbeck (QB) vs. Dallas.
With all the time that Hasselbeck and his receivers have missed this year, he’s just not a very good quarterback and doesn’t have a good matchup this week.

Tim Hightower (RB) vs. Philadelphia.
Since rushing for 109 yards and a touchdown in his first start in Week 9 against St. Louis, Hightower has rushed 35 times for 78 yards and 2 touchdowns. The two scores both came last week, but his 2.2-yard average is discouraging. He’s still a menacing force in the red zone and near the goal line, but that’s hard to predict when it’ll happen. This week, he faces a tough run defense in Philly.

Donovan McNabb (QB) and Brian Westbrook (RB) vs. Arizona.
McNabb has produced so many turnovers recently that the All-Pro was actually pulled from the game last week. If it can happen once, it can happen again. The Cardinals are No. 8 against the run, so Westbrook, although one of the league’s top backs, may have a difficult time finding room to run. If he’s your best option, though, it’s hard to bench him.

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